Samhain 2010

Perform Salt Water Purification

Invoke Androgyne:

“Divine Androgyne, eldest and nameless,
You are male and female simultaneously
The in-between, neutral, neither-nor,
You transform transgression into transcendence
Infinite, Essential, Eternal,
Source of all, the force behind form
You embody the sacred value of duality
Nevertheless, You are One
Primeval, first, the birth of consciousness
Teach me Your divine dance of balance
I pray You, bless and uphold my rite.”

Cast Circle, then ring bell 3 times.

Invoke Inari:

“Goddess of foxes and fire,
Lady of Harvest and bestower of passion,
I invite you to my Circle tonight
To celebrate with me the ending of the year.
You turn the tomb into a womb,
Breathing new life into creation as the harvest is tended
And so as the year dies, it is reborn.
Be with me now,
Hail and Welcome!”

Pour rice into the offering dish and say:

“Mighty Inari, accept my sacrifice.”

Invoke the Morrighan:

“Lady of life and death
Goddess of Sovereignty
This, more than any other, is Your time
Join my Circle tonight as I welcome
The in-between time, your time.
Tonight you join in ecstasy with the Dagda
and I pray that some of it enters my life.
Be here with me now,
Hail and Welcome!”

Pour red wine into the offering dish and say:

“The Morrighan, accept my sacrifice!”

Light the Goddess candle.

Invoke Lucifer:

“Lord of the Evening Star,
Tonight the year ends and time itself stops
Only to begin again with a new dawn
And You as the Morning Star.
Join my Circle tonight as
I celebrate the sacred cycle that You embody
Birth and death are two sides of the same coin
And you usher us into both with Your light.
Be with me now,
Hail and Welcome!”

Add two pennies to the dish and say:

“Lucifer, accept my sacrifice.”

Ring bell three times, then give the statement of intent:

“The bell tolls the ending of the Year, yet as the past fades it becomes the New Year. Now is the time of returning, creating a time that is not a time. We now stand outside the Wheel until Yule, when the light will be reborn and time will return to normal. I must remember that it is always darkest before the dawn; it is time to confront my old fears, to put old doubts behind me, and cull the weakness within me. That way I can enter the New Year strengthened and with a pure heart and a clean conscience. On this Samhain night I also give thanks to my Ancestors, without whom I would not be. They remind me to take stock in all that I have lost, for it is through both sorrow and joy that we are shaped. Tonight I help to turn the Wheel and usher in the night.”

Drop a cake into the offering bowl and say:

“Ancestors, honored mothers and fathers of my line,
You lived your lives to the fullest
Working and hoping for a better life for your children
Just as I hope for a better world for our descendants.
I give thanks for your legacy
And the history that you have given me
For they have helped to shape
The woman that I have become.
Revered Ancestors, accept my offering!”

Light the white candle for those family members that have passed on, remember them by naming them.

Light the black candle and say:

“Eventually even the stars in the night burn out
One by one
Leaving us in darkness.
Now is the time to turn inward
To our own inner darkness
And take stock of what we find there.
In the time of the final harvest
What do we find that we are ready to rid ourselves of?
What should we leave behind in the ashes of the Old Year?”

Write down on parchment paper all the things you want to remove from yourself and your life. When done, light the pieces of paper from the black candle and let them burn to ash in the cauldron.

When all the papers have burned, say:

“Mighty Gods and Goddesses
Genus Locii, you spirits of place,
Noble Ancestors,
We have given to the fire those things
That weaken us or hold us back
But as Nature abhors a vacuum
I ask that the negative that has been purged from us
Be replaced with things that are beneficial.
Transform our weaknesses into
Joy, passion, commitment, and understanding.
Let us go forth renewed and restored
As I do will, so shall it be!”

Take a moment to think about the season, about endings and how they recycle into beginnings. Then say:

“Behold! Tonight I understand the Mystery!
Everything passes, everything changes
Seed becomes fruit to, in turn, return to seed.
In birth we die, on death we feed.
I honor the passing of the Sun King this night
As I also mark the passing of all who have gone before
And all who will follow after.
Great Goddess, You who gives birth to the fallen,
Remind us that in the time of greatest darkness,
There is the potential for the greatest light.”

Prepare to take the Omen, saying:

“Gift of Blessing, gift of destiny,
I have opened myself to the
Gods, Ancestors, and Spirits of this place.
I ask that those ancient and wise ones -
May the true sight be in me,
May the true voice be mine.
Gods, Ancestors, and Spiritus,
What blessing do you offer me
Between now and Yule?”

Draw 3 cards and interpret. If unfavorable, make another offering and try the Omen again.

Hold up the cakes and say:

“Behold, the holy grain!
Let this bounty of the land promote generosity
May my Gods bless it so as I partake of the feast
I may have the growth of wealth
The soundness of health
And the delight of wisdom!
So may it be!”

Place a cake in the offering dish, then eat one.

Hold up the chalice and say:

“Behold, the holy cup!
The vessel that carries the wine of inspiration
The outpouring of blessing from the Old Ones.
May my Gods callow this cup
As I drink this blessed wine
Fill my spirit with joy, reverence, and bounty.
So may it be!”

Pour some wine into the dish, then drink some.

Say:

“I am grateful for the bountiful harvest I have reaped this year. I am sorry it took so much to make me aware of what I valued and how I was losing it through neglect. I forgot that there can be no harvest if the fields of my life are left untended. Even though the season of growth is over, I can prepare for the time of new growth by laying the groundwork now. There is plenty to be done even in the season of fallowness if I want to have a prosperous spring. As it has been done in the past, as I have done now, as it shall be done in the future; I have forged a link in the chain of Tradition. May I go forth into the world secure with the knowledge that my ritual has pleased my Gods and may I leave this sacred space with Their blessing.”

Perform the piacular offering:

“If out of ignorance or faulty memory,
If for any reason I have made offense
Gathered Deities, Ancestors, and Spirits,
Hear me now!
Accept this offering as recompense
And know that I meant to ill-intent!
My heart and purpose were pure.
Accept this offering!”

Pour the remaining wine and add the last cake to the offering dish.

Devoke Lucifer, the Morrighan, and Inari.

Devoke the Quarters.

Open Circle, salute earth and sky, then say:

“My Circle is open, but unbroken,
I leave here in peace and love
For I a child of Earth and starry Heaven
May the sacred presence remain with me always
My rite has now ended.
Blessed be.”

Thank the Androgyne:

“Divine Androgyne – Nameless, Eldest, Ageless
I must leave the liminal time of the Circle
And return to my own time and place
From You all acquired face and form
And to You we all shall return
I thank You for blessing and upholding my rite
And for helping my stumbling attempts
To walk Your divine path of balance.
Blessed be!

Ring bell three times.

Eidolon Moon's Notes:

This was the first holy day I had done in a while (I think the last Sabbat I had done was Beltane) and I was a little nervous. My non-pagan, yet pagan friendly husband was watching and participated in the part where we burned away weaknesses or things that needed to removed from our lives. I think having him there made me a little more nervous than usual because I always want to seem like I know what I'm doing in front of him.

I did do two minor screw-ups, but in my defense I was rusty. I called the South quarter the West. And when invoking the Deities, I invoked Lucifer and made his offering but forgot to light his candle. Honestly, I don't know how I did that, somehow it totally slipped my mind and I never noticed that the candle wasn't lit. Well, I guess that's why we have the piacular offering! Because of those two mishaps my first Omen wasn't the best. I pulled The Chariot, The Moon, and Queen of Swords. I used the Dream Enchantress deck, in those the basic idea of the cards are: you can see danger and must go through it; some things can only be hunted in the dark but take aim carefully; and you know something bad is coming, forewarned is forearmed. After making another offering and redrawing the Omen, I got: Justice, King of Wands, and 3 of Coins. Meanings - you reap what you sow; walk you path and try to be positive, and let your creative juices flow. I think the middle card was for me and the last card was for my Hubby. But I could be wrong.

All in all, this went very well and I really enjoyed the bare bones-ness of this ritual. It helped me to get back into the swing of things and I concentrated on things that I really needed to, getting rid of that which I no longer need, that which hold me back and makes me weak. Mostly I asked to remove the blockages in my marriage, remove Cxxxxxxxx from my/our lives, and to help me to remove my indecision and unhappiness. We'll see how it works.